Eng426 20th century english literature

The Chorus: they are a very important part of the play. They are the women of Canterbury and their role is “to bear witness” to what happens to Thomas Becket. It is through them that the truth is known about what happened in the past in Canterbury. They are the representatives of the poor, the ordinary people and the voice of Canterbury. The audience is led to reflect on issues about life and death, destiny and martyrdom.

Self-Assessment Exercise

From your encounter with the Archbishop of Canterbury, describe your understanding of martyrdom

4.0 CONCLUSION

Murder in the Cathedral could be regarded as one of the major modernist plays that dwells so much on experimentation. The play has been read as a poetic drama especially with its rhythmic verses and repetitions. Eliot makes use of free verse and the chorus to enhance the emotional engagement and set the mood of the play.In Murder in the Cathedral, he deploys music, imagery and symbolism to convey the message of the play.

5.0 SUMMARY

In this Unit you have studied T. S Eliot’s Murder in the Cathedral. You have been exposed to what the play is about through a short summary of the play, and the major
themes were briefly discussed to make it easy for you to do a personal critique of the work.

6.0TUTOR-MARKEDASSIGNMENT

Do you consider T. S Eliot’s Murder in the Cathedral a good example of a modernist work? Support your answer with convincing references from the play.

7.0REFERENCES/FURTHER READING

Coote, S. (1993).The Penguin History of English Literature. New York: Penguin Books. Drabble, M. (ed.) (1985).The Oxford Companion to English Literature. London: Oxford
University Press.
Eliot. T.S. (1987).Murder in the Cathedral. First published 1935, New York: Penguins. Esslin, M. (1980).Theatre of Absurd. New York: Penguin Books.
Fairchild, L, Terry. (1999). “Time, Eternity, and Immortality in T.S. Eliot’s Four Quartets.”Modern Science and Vedic Science Vol.9 No.1, Fairfield: Maharishi University of Management.
Faulkner, P.(ed.). (1986).A Modernist Reading: Modernism in England 1910-1930.
London: Batsford.
Hollander, J. Kermode, F. (eds). (1973). The Oxford Anthology of English Literature.
2 Vols. London: Oxford University Press.
Lodge, D. (1977).The Modes of Modern Writing: Metaphor, Metonymy and the Typology of Modern Literature. London: Edward Arnold.
Ward, A.C. (1956).Twentieth–Century Literature 1901-1950.12^thedn. London: Methuen. Wikipedia. “T. S. Eliot.” Wikimedia 2015.Accessed 15 June. 2015.